Star Fire
by Raaon Teisha
Summary: I ask you, what would happen if teens from our era dropped into the world of Avatar with their guns, radios, etc? Would the technology of the Fire nation change? How would the battle with Ozai be influenced? READ AND FIND OUT! It's good, I promise! OC's!
1. Dreams

**A/N:** Aw yeah! I've spent a LONG time thinking on this story, and debating as to whether or not I wanted to upload it. I had it up on here once, but I deleted it because I was REALLY unhappy with the way it was turning out. I've redone this story a bit, made it more to my liking, and now I have decided to repost it. I hope you like!

For those of you who don't get the wonderful world of guns, don't worry. I had to do some mega research (I looked at pictures and watched Tremors and Jurassic Park) to figure out what I wanted to use here. The amazing modern guns don't come in until later, but the M16 in this chapter is an antique that was used during WWII. Google it. It's pretty darn cool!

**

* * *

****Star Fire**

Chapter 1: Dreams

Lila and Sammy were cleaning their guns one night when the coach of their shooting club, Coach Donavis, called Sammy's cell. Lila answered when she noticed the caller I.D.

"Hi, Coach Don."

"Evening Lila." he said. " "I wonder if I could talk to Samantha."

"Sure." Lila said as she handed the phone to her sister.

"Hey coach." Sammy said when she answered.

"Evening Samantha. I have some important news to pass on."

"Shoot. Sammy waits."

"It looks like the rest of the club has made their decisions. You will coach them next year." Sammy let out an excited scream.

"Omigod, are you serious?" she asked, hoping her coach wasn't playing some cruel, sick joke.

"Serious as a heart attack, Samantha." he answered. "The team also wants Lila to coach, but only when you can't. Beginning next year, you will make all the decisions. You just need to take the firearms safety class before 4-H starts up again next year. I'll see you two next weekend for the last meeting of the year. Bye, Samantha. Tell Lila I say the same."

Sammy mumbled a "Yessir, thank you sir." before hanging up, her eyes wide with shock. That was the news the teens needed to make their day complete.

"Well?" Lila asked impatiently. Sammy shifted to look at her sister.

"I. . . I…We're coaching the 4-H marksmanship club next year!" she yelled excitedly.

"Oh my gosh, we are?!" Lila screamed. The girls' mother came running in, her own rifle in hand.

"What happened? I heard screaming," she asked.

"Coach Don just called. The club's votes are in. I'm coaching the marksmanship club next year." she said, an ear-to-ear grin stretching along her lips.

"Sam, I'm so proud! Shane, your daughters are the new marksmanship coaches!" Cheyenne called to her husband. He, too, came running into the living room, his father's antique M16 in one hand and a dish of gun polish in the other.

"My baby girls are going to be the new coaches of the marksmanship club for next year?" he asked, a huge grin tugging at the corners of his already smiling lips.

"Yup, dad, we are." Lila piped up. Shane set down his M16 and grabbed his girls up in a huge bear hug.

"That's the kind of stuff I like to hear. My girls following in their dad's footsteps."

Shane barely let go of his daughters when the TV changed from SIRIUS country radio to Avatar. The first season's season finale was on, and it would be the girls' hundred-somethingth time to see it. New episodes weren't due to appear until March, and the girls weren't too pleased.

The hour the episode was on went by rather quickly. Before the sisters knew it, the trio arrived at the North Pole, Zuko got into the city, Aang went to the spirit world, Zhao launched his attack, Zuko lost Aang to Katara, Sokka, and Yue, Zhao killed the moon spirit, Yue sacrificed herself for the moon spirit, and Aang saved the water tribe.

Before they realized it, the clock struck 11. Lila and Sammy headed upstairs to the attic. When the family moved into the house 7 years ago, the 3-room attic was converted to the girls' room, study, and anything else they could think of.

Lila and Sammy went to sleep thinking of how cool it would be to visit the world of Avatar, with certain necessities of course. The girls would need their walkie-talkies, an endless supply of AA batteries, horses and tack, Lila would need her boom box and an unlimited supply of D batteries, her rifle, bullets, and her camera while Sammy would need her gun collection, bullets, her CD's, her karaoke machine and most importantly, her Chinese-English dictionary. Seeing as all writing in the cartoon was in Chinese, they would need a way to understand it all.

* * *

The girls woke next morning when the rifle alarm clock began to fire. Groggily, the sisters pulled themselves out of their bunk bed, got dressed, and headed down for their first day of summer vacation.

Completely awake by the time they made it downstairs, the teens began to make breakfast. Sammy pulled out the waffle iron and mix while Lila grabbed the square skillet, the eggs, and a spatula.

Mixing everything, Sammy poured what would be the first waffle in the waffle iron and closed the lid.

Lila cracked four eggs and began to toss them around the skillet. The sizzling woke Cheyenne and Shane. Thinking something was burning, the two ran into the kitchen to see their daughters cooking breakfast.

"We should be used to this by now, dear." Cheyenne said, yawing. Her husband nodded. Lila's watch went off, signaling that it was 6:45.

"We got an hour and 45 minutes until summer camp starts," she said to her sister. The light on the waffle iron began blinking, and Sammy lifted the top iron. As carefully as she could, she pulled the waffle out, until she burned herself. She squeaked.

"Here, I'll get it." Lila said as she motioned for Sammy to move. Lila slid her knife carefully along the edges of the waffle. She, too, burned herself, but it didn't phase her. Lila was unusually warm-blooded, which caused her to be less affected by heat. She always thought she'd make the best firebender.

Her father had forced both girls to take martial arts and gymnastics classes when they were 6 and 7. Two years had made the girls exceptional warriors, and not many guys would even talk to them for fear they'd say something wrong and cause the girls to hurt them and their reputation.

* * *

After everyone finished their waffles, eggs, and O.J., Sammy went upstairs to grab her and her sister's boots, hats, and chaps (A/N: pronounced shaps!) before the girls jumped into their F350 crew cab dually powerstroke diesel V8 with, above all things, LAMBO DOORS! Not only did it have the above mentioned, but it also had a DVD player, CD player, cell phone charger, a cattle guard on the front, window guard in the back, running boards, a sun roof, and lest we forget, the fact that it was black with red and orange flame shooting back from the cattle guard onto the doors and 'morphing' into a girl on horseback with a very expensive rifle. It was the girls' dream truck. That pickup was a dream to drive.

Lila was the one to drive it most of the time. She had gotten her license on her 16th birthday, and now, it had been a little over a year since that fateful day. Thank goodness the girls' parents were rich, or they couldn't have afforded the truck, limo, and Jaguar they had.

"Lila! We gotta go!" Sammy called from the door as her sister attempted to move their Great Dane lying across her lap.

"Take a chill pill! And besides, Munster is on me, so gimme a break!" Lila called from her perch under her monstrously huge dog.

"Munster! Get off Lila or you'll make us late!" Sammy yelled, setting the boots, hats, and chaps down on the table by the doorway. She walked over to her stranded sister, grabbed Munster's collar, and proceeded to pull him off Lila, with Lila pushing, of course. The sisters ran to the door, grabbed their gear, and piled into the truck. Lila realized she left the keys on the key hang, so she ran back inside to grab them.

Lila returned, started the truck, and sped out of the mile-long driveway onto FM 1187, headed towards Gondor Equestrian Center.

* * *

As the girls pulled up to the stable, two horses busted out of their stalls.

"Hey Lila, Soto and Shadaw just got out," Sammy said nonchalantly. Sure enough, the two grey quarter horses were tearing around the barn. Lila stopped the truck at the gate, blocking the horses in. Sammy jumped out, grabbed her boots, pulled them on, and ran to get her horse from the hot walker. Lila made a mad dash for her paint she did barrels on. There were only four other people there, and three were beginners who could barely stay on a horse. The fourth was a girl named Mia. She was on a very tall cobalt black Rocky Mountain Horse. Riding in a western saddle, Mia wrapped her lasso around the horn, nudged her horse into a thunderous run, readied her lasso, and took off after the ponies.

Sammy ran up to her champion team penning quarter horse, tied the lead rope onto the halter to make makeshift reins, and tossed the bareback pad on him. She vaulted on her already warmed up horse and took off in the direction of the rogue horses.

Lila, with a saddle, pad, and bridle in tow, ran to the pen her barrel horse was turned out in. Luckily for her, her horse was running around the pen bucking, meaning she was warmed up. Lila grabbed her horse, threw the saddle on as tight as she could, and gently stuffed the bit into her horse's mouth, careful not to injure the horse's lips or teeth. She tied the gate shut, jumped on, and ran to join her sister and friend in the round-up of the little grey horses.

All three girls competed together at team penning, and this situation wasn't much different. They just had no pen and a bigger arena. Sammy took the left flank, Mia took right, and Lila took up drag. Quickly, the girls herded the horses into the round pen. Sammy, on the shortest horse, jumped off and chained the horses in. The whole fiasco took about five minutes in all.

"Well, that really helped me warm up. Trail ride anyone?" Sammy asked.

"I'm game, even though I just came from one." Mia answered.

"How's about we get properly prepared first?" Lila asked. Both nodded, agreeing.

Nothing more interesting happened that day, but it was a Saturday. And not just any Saturday, but the second Saturday of the month. That day just so happened to be the day that Mia was going to spend the night with Sammy and Lila at some remote campsite with their portable TV so they could watch the Avatar marathon.

* * *

That night, Lila and Sammy were eagerly awaiting their friend's arrival.

"When is Mia gonna get here?" Lila asked impatiently. "If we don't get going soon, we'll get there after dark."

"Sis, my turn. Take a chill pill!" Sammy added. The doorbell rang and Munster began to bark.

"I'll get it!" Lila screamed. She jumped up, vaulted her three-foot-tall dog, and slammed into the door. She jerked it open.

"Excited much?" Mia asked. Lila nodded. Lila grabbed up the duffel bags, TV, flare gun, three rifles, tent, and their CD's. Sammy grabbed the keys to the truck. She got in the truck while her sister loaded their gear and Mia grabbed her own stuff, which was simply a duffel bag and her 3rd Matinee: Meanwhile CD. Lila and Mia jumped in the truck, Lila started it up, and they were off.

It didn't take much time to get to the campsite. 30 minutes at best. The teens grabbed the gear out of the back of the pickup and began to set up.

"Oh, snap. I forgot the camping stove." Mia said.

"Oh well. I brought my MRE's. They may not taste too wonderful, but they'll do." Lila finished.

"Hey, ladies," came a voice from Lila's past. Recognizing the mystery and edge to the voice, Lila responded in the only way she knew how.

"You're not supposed to be back for another week, Zane!" she screamed.

"Well, I just couldn't let my favorite three people live another week without me, now could I?" Zane asked. Lila shook her head and laughed.

"I missed the whole lot of ya. Let's just say that military school ain't as tough as they say it is."

"Well, Zane, you're tougher than the average soldier. And that's sayin' somethin'." Mia piped up.

"Yeah, since the head dude at the military camp practically jumped with joy when I finished the obstacle course the first day at least five obstacles ahead of the others. I think I've got a good shot at the army. Another year, and if the war is still going, I'm gonna get to see what Iraq looks like without needing some stupid passport."

Zane took a closer look at the three girls, mostly their hair.

"Whoa, I missed a lot. Mia, you're black and blonde! New hair. Looks good. Sammy, brown and blonde, not too original, but you pull it off. And my baby. Lila, holy shit! You look like a regular fire nation noblewoman with black and red hair. Wazzup with that?" Zane finished, a smile spreading across his mouth.

"Well, we HAD to do something about our bland hair. Highlights seemed the way to go. Sammy got blonde highlights, Mia got black highlights, and I got red highlights. Whadda ya think?"

"One word: wow." Zane meandered over to the tent. The sun was half-set now, and a fire still hadn't been started. Mia reached for her lighter.

"Dang, we can't get a fire going because not only did I forget my camping stove, but I also forgot my lighter. Fuck, I hate it when I do that."

"I see you still haven't changed, Mia. Still as blonde as ever." Zane commented as he leaned down for a hug.

"I RESENT THAT!" Mia squealed. Zane smiled. He sat down right next to the pile of kindling the girls had gotten, picked up two promising looking sticks and began to rub them together. In a matter of seconds, the bone-dry bits of wood ignited.

"Who needs a lighter when ya got me?" Zane asked. Lila sat down next to him and leaned on him. He turned his head and smiled at her.

"So, it's almost six. Avatar should be coming on anytime now. Better set up the TV." Sammy said, moving toward the now set-up tent. She crawled into the tent and grabbed the TV. As she slunk back out, she handed it off to Mia who set it down beside her. Mia began to play with the antennae. She turned the TV on and kept fiddling with the antennae. Finally, she got a surprisingly clear screen to pop up. She changed the channel from whatever it was on to Nick. Avatar had just started.

Mia crawled over to the other side of the fire with Sammy, her sister, and Zane. Zane was leaning against a tree trunk with Lila precariously leaning against his arm, her head resting gently on his shoulder. Sammy was sitting with her knees against her chest, her fingers woven together on top of her knees with her chin resting on it on the right of Lila and Zane. Mia crawled over to the left of her friend and friend's boyfriend. She sat against a tree trunk herself.

* * *

The ten hours the marathon was on ended and the teens stretched their stiff muscles.

"I'm game for some sleep. Dunno 'bout y'all. Don't really care, either." Sammy yawned. She crawled to the tent and disappeared inside.

"Well, hun, you can sleep wherever you want. I gotta run check my Harley. Then, I'll be back and I'll just sleep on the ground. Savor one more wonderful night on nothin' but dirt." Zane said, getting up and stretching. He checked his watch. It read 4:03. He began to make his way toward the campground parking lot to make sure no one, or nothing, touched his precious bike.

Upon his return five minutes later, the girls were up singing and dancing to Mia's CD she brought.

"Third Matinee, huh?" Zane asked. Mia nodded. The songs changed from Echo Hill to Silver Cage. Zane walked over to Lila, twisted his arm, wrapped it cautiously around her stomach, and gracefully flipped her over his arm.

"HEY! You remember!" Lila squealed. She and Zane used to do all sorts of dancing for the school talent shows when they were in 7th, 8th, and 9th grade. But now, seeing as they were on their senior year in high school, and Zane had been off at military school for the past year, she didn't think he'd remember. But obviously he did.

"Well, ladies, we had better get some sleep, at least." Zane said. "Man, I'll be danged if we don't wake up here in the morning." he mumbled to himself.

Little did he know, he, along with the girls, would end up somewhere they recognized only too well, from a certain TV show they all enjoyed to watch. And, little did they know, fate would give them a helping hand.

* * *

So, what do we think of it? Crap? Not crap? Please do tell me, and I'll love you forever! If there's anyone out there who has a favorite gun, lemme know, and if the time's right, I might plug it into the story

**_READ AND REVIEW PLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAASE!!_**


	2. Dreams Become A Reality

Haha! Chapter 2!! Yeah! I am on a roll! Please enjoy, and remember to review, as well! Reviews are what keep me going!

* * *

Chapter 2: Dreams Become A Reality

The sun rose the next morning to a beautiful beach. Pale peach sand glistened at the water's edge while the grass lining the beach sparkled with dew. The waves sloshed gently against the shore. Birds chirped in the background and the wind whispered through the trees. On the beach, four teens slept, clueless as to where they were. Their horses were tied to trees nearby with a bunch of modern electronics laid out beside them.

The eldest, a boy named Zane, stirred at the sound of distant yelling.

All of a sudden, trees began to catch fire, the ground began to shake, and a battle was soon raging a mile away.

In unison, all four teens shot up from their places on the sand. Zane looked around. He knew those sounds. He remembered those sounds from military camp. A flaming cannon ball flew directly above their heads, bringing the teens into realization at the alternate universe they were in.

"Are we where I think we are?" Mia asked.

"If you think we're in the Avatar world, then I feel compelled to say: yup, you're right." Zane answered. Numerous simultaneous fireblasts came from the battle and nearly reached the teens. Their horses began to prance and whinny.

"Hey, what the…?" Lila asked as she turned in the direction of the noise. There, she saw her horse, her sister's horse, her best friend's horse, and her boyfriend's horse, as well as some other stuff she recognized.

"Is there a reason that our horses are tied to trees and our stuff is next to them?" Lila asked.

"Best I can figure, when we came, they were sent to help us. Either that, or they were just in the way. Personally, I'm happy they're here." Zane answered. All four got up to attempt to get their stuff together when they heard a voice.

"HEY! What're you four doing over there?" It was a man's voice. Sammy spun on her heels to face the fire nation soldiers they now confronted.

"Boys, we're doin dang-well whatever we please. Why do you care?" Sammy retorted. The men stopped and proceeded to shoot fire at them. Acting out of instinct, Lila and Sammy ran for their guns, which were easily spotted from where they were. Lila grabbed and loaded her shotgun while Sammy did the same with her M14. The girls aimed and fired four shots each, killing all eight guys that threatened them.

"Well, now that that's out of our way, maybe we'd better get packed and get going!" Zane yelled over the drone of battle raging and getting nearer and nearer the teens and dead soldiers.

* * *

Two hours later, the teens were attempting to get through the forest they had used as a cover to make their escape.

"Well, could it get any worse?" Zane asked.

"Moron! Shut up, or it WILL get worse!" Sammy yelled at him. She was very superstitious.

"Hey, would you two quit fighting? It's very annoying. Hey, is that a town up ahead?" Lila asked.

Zane looked in the direction she was talking about.

"I'll be darned, sure is. We need to stop for supplies, food, and most importantly, and I can't believe I'm saying this, clothes. If we're gonna be stuck in this world for a while, we'll need to fit in. After all, me in blue jeans and a white T-shirt, and you girls in shorts and tanks, we don't necessarily blend in." Zane said matter-of-factly.

"Yeah, and besides, riding western in these shorts is chafing my thighs." Mia commented.

Lila began to hum, and her humming went on for a fair amount of time, as she switched from song to song.

A chipmunk darted out of one of the trees directly on Zane's left, startling his stallion and giving him a reason to act up.

"Look, Mr., I ain't gonna take this from ya now! Zan Zibar! I'm serious here!" he yelled as his horse, Zan Zibar, began bucking and twisting like the broncs from the rodeos the teens so loved.

* * *

It had been three days since the teens landed in the Avatar world, and so far they had jobs, clean clothes, and a place to stay. Not to mention, they were making some very good money. They would work at an all-around weapon store during the morning and early afternoon, and in the evening, they would go out to the market and sing and dance for the townsfolk, earning them lots and lots of tips. They would double their daily earnings when they performed.

Little did they know, Sammy's dream date was soon to arrive.

Late in the afternoon, a Fire Nation ship pulled up to the village of Raao. Off came around ten Fire Nation solders, an elderly looking man in Fire Nation armor, and a teenage boy in the same with an ugly scar across his left eye.

"He…Hey, guys. I…Is that who I think it is?" Sammy asked, excitement in her voice.

"Well, let's see. Tall, tan, handsome, scar over one eye, bald minus one very sexy ponytail, yup, I think that's Prince Attitude." Mia stated and smiled evilly.

"Oh, no you don't. Prince 'Tude is all mine!" Sammy yelled to her friend.

"Wanna bet?!"

"You're on, Martina!"

"Stupid, It's Mia, not Martina!"

"Ah, well, get over it!" Sammy yelled to her friend and the two took off for their usual performance spot, not twenty feet from Zuko's ship.

Zuko looked around the dock.

"Uncle, we only need supplies. I do not want you to go exploring and dragging back a bunch of useless stuff. Okay?" Zuko asked.

"Whatever you say, nephew." Zuko knew that usually meant 'Yeah, and I'll ignore you anyway because I am your elder.' Zuko began to fume.

"Uncle, I mean it!" he yelled.

"Control your temper, nephew." Iroh stated, smiling. He had seen a tea shop. Not just any tea shop, but one who's specialty was none other than Ginseng tea, Iroh's all-time fave.

Iroh made a beeline for the tea shop while Zuko went to check out the local weapons shop, the very same that the four teens found employment at.

As Zuko entered, the girl behind the register looked up and at him. She grinned widely. He didn't notice.

"Good afternoon, your highness. May I help you with something?" Lila asked genially.

"I'm glad someone finally recognized my position. And no, I'm just browsing." he answered tersely.

"Okay, but if you need anything, I'm of service. Just call." Lila said, bowing and leaving to go finish up her duties before she, too, left to sing and perform.

A few minutes later, Zuko walked up to the lady behind the register. Quickly, she set down her key to the cabinet she was closing and looked up at him.

"Find everything okay, I presume?"

"Fairly okay. I just need this." Zuko said as he laid down a case containing a rather sharp dagger with a handle decorated like a tiger and dragon, each with red rubies for eyes.

"Fairly expensive item, eh. Many have come in with hopes of being able to buy this one day. Someone special in mind?" Lila asked, prying a little deeper, she was curious as to what occasion, or who, the prince was buying such a fine dagger for.

"It's for my uncle. His birthday is coming up in a couple weeks, and I remember him saying something about seeing a dagger that looked quite a lot like this and admiring it greatly. He said he wanted one like it. So I figure I'll get it for him." Zuko answered.

"He must be a very lucky man to have you for a nephew. Twenty-eight gold, thirteen silver, and ten copper pieces, please." Lila said. Zuko pulled out a pouch and grabbed some money. He counted out the price of the dagger, paid, and left, clueless as to the fact he was being watched with great interest.

* * *

Zuko found his uncle some time later, admiring a rather odd looking statue of a dragon perched in a tree with a necklace of rubies adorning its neck.

"Uncle, come. I have what I need, and it's getting late. We need to return to the ship. We leave at daybreak." Zuko stated, dragging his uncle (literally) from the curio stand. As they returned to their ship, they found a group of people standing near their ship, chanting something that sounded like 'Sing the stepping song! Sing the stepping song!'. And so, the group of teens began to sing a rather odd sounding song, with a little help from a rather large silver box-like device that played the music the teens would dance and sing to. Quite surprising, the teens had very good voices. Zuko and Iroh walked over, only to get sucked into a trance by the song.

The song, later identified as One, Two, Step by a woman oddly named as Ciara, began to play, and two of the girls began dancing.

The two of the group, later known as Mia and Sammy, finished the song to a long round of applause and lots of coins tossed their way. The girls went about to collecting their earnings. Zuko and Iroh woke from their trance and Iroh tossed a couple gold coins to the group as he followed Zuko onto the ship.

* * *

_The Next Day_

Zuko walked out onto the deck of his ship early that morning. There, he saw a few people out cold on the dock; obviously they had a little too much to drink the night before. He also saw a couple girls walking to the weaponry shop he visited the day before. They were nothing special, just your average looking teenage girls, except their hair. One had brown and blonde hair and the other had blonde and black hair.

_Odd, I've never seen people with hair like that, other than the Fire Nation noblewomen. I wonder…_ Zuko thought to himself. His uncle walked up behind him.

"Prince Zuko, are we going to set sail now? The crew and captain are all up, and we are prepared to leave," his uncle asked.

"No uncle. Do you see those two women over there, with the multi-color hair?" Zuko asked.

"Why yes, I do. I wonder if they're Fire Nation noblewomen."

"That's exactly what I thought, uncle."

"Well, my prince, maybe you should go talk to them. Maybe make some new friends."

"I don't need friends. What I do need, and I forgot to get it yesterday, is some sword polish. I'll return later." Zuko said.

And with that, Zuko left to search the dock for sword polish. His Long Dao broadswords were collecting dust, and Zuko was known to keep his swords in tip-top shape.

Nearing mid afternoon, and having searched nearly every weaponry shop in the entire market, Zuko headed to the one he visited the day before. But this time, it would be very busy and working in there would be three teenage girls.

The bell atop the door jingled, and the girl behind the register, the one with the brown and blonde hair Zuko had seen earlier, looked up from her paperwork.

"Mia! Come here!" she whispered quietly to her friend. Mia looked up at the familiar face.

"Are you thinking about starting that bet now?" Mia asked. Sammy nodded. And so, Sammy outpaced her friend to the banished prince.

"May I help you find something, your highness?" she asked as sweetly as she could.

"Do you, by chance, have any sword polish? I've checked every other weaponry shop here and nothing." Zuko said, sounding very pissed.

"Why yes, of course we do. It's behind the counter. Please follow me, sir." Sammy said and turned toward the counter. Zuko followed her, and Sammy pulled a key from a pouch on her belt. She knelt down to a cabinet behind the counter.

"Just one second, your highness." she said, sounding like she was struggling with the door. And she was. She unlocked the cabinet, she knew the sound of the lock, and pulled the handle. The door barely budged an inch.

"Wonderful. Just wonderful. Stupid, inconsiderate cabinet. Won't open again. This may take a second." Sammy said and continued her muttering. She reached behind the counter and pulled out a second key. Carefully, she turned the cabinet around to the back, which proved to be more difficult than it looked. Once she did, she inserted the key into a second key hole and the cabinet doors fell open.

"I really, really, _really_ hate this stupid cabinet." Sammy said as she pulled out a rather large can of sword polish. She handed it to Zuko.

"That'll be four silver pieces please, your highness." Zuko nodded and handed her the money. All of a sudden, someone in the shop let out a cry.

"PIRATES!" the lady screamed.

"Oh yay. Just wonderful." Sammy exclaimed, fear in her voice. The pirate captain, dressed in fire nation clothes, walked up to the counter.

Sammy screamed, "Um, Lila! Pirates are your area of expertise!"

Lila came running in from somewhere in the back. She pushed Sammy aside and looked the pirate captain in the eye.

"May I help you gentlemen?" she asked casually.

"Yeah. You can give us all your earnings for today, or we'll burn down this fine establishment you've got here." he replied rather sourly.

"I'm afraid to say, we just opened. All we've earned so far is a meager four silver pieces."

"You'll do good not to test my patience." he growled in her face, smiling.

"And you'll do very good to get. Out. Of. My. Face!" she said, causing the pirate to jump back, surprised by her action.

"Oh, that's it babe. Now, you've pushed me over the limits!" he yelled. He drew out his sword and swung at the girl, who simply ducked, still smiling.

"Is that _all_ you've got? I mean, really now. You're a pirate for Agni's sake. Gimme something to work with here!" Lila said as she tossed her uniform robe off, revealing a pair of baggy blue jeans and a turquoise tank top.

"Stupid! You're not supposed to take the robe off!" Zane yelled from behind.

"Zane, do me a favor and shut up." Lila said, picking up a sword from nearby, still smiling, much to the pirates' and Zuko's surprise.

"Well now, if you really wanna fight, then let's fight!" she yelled, brandishing the sword. The pirate raised the sword above his head and brought it down full speed toward Lila's shoulder. She nimbly ducked out of the way, bringing the side of her sword down on the back of his head, causing him to see stars.

"Whoa. Where'd that come from?" Lila said quite loudly. The pirate regained his footing and took another swing at her, one of which she easily blocked. Zuko stood beside the counter. _Whoa, she's good._ he thought to himself.

"Okay, enough fooling around. Time to get critical." the pirate said, charging Lila.

"Cheesy line alert! Cheesy line alert!" Lila said in a mock alert voice, the usual high pitched, monotone girlish voice. She ducked out of the way of the pirate and hit him in the head with the side of her sword again, this time knocking him out cold.

"And THAT'S why no one pisses me off! Hmph!" Lila yelled at the unconscious pirate, snapping beside her ear. Carefully, she placed the sword back where it was. She looked up and the entire store was staring at her.

"What? You've never seen a girl take down a pirate before?" she asked. Zuko shook his head.

"No, actually, we haven't. It's not a common sight to see a teenage peasant girl take on a full-grown male pirate. Usually they get violent and blood is spilt."

"Ah. That would explain the strange looks I'm getting. I need to hide! I hate having people staring at me." Lila said nonchalantly. She dove at her robe and threw it on. She noticed Iroh standing in the doorway of the shop. Determined to get the eyes of the customers off her, she walked over to Iroh.

"Might I help you find anything today, sir?"

"Would you ladies be interested in stopping by my ship later tonight?" Iroh asked. The girls looked at each other, grinning widely, and then they turned to him and nodded.

_Later that night, on Zuko's ship_

"Uncle, why did you invite those girls to visit our ship?"

"Because they were the same ones that were dancing on the docks. They may be Fire Nation nobility. Wouldn't it be rude of us not to invite them onto our ship if they truly are Fire Nation nobility?"

"I suppose so. But still, uncle."

"'But still, uncle' what? What did I do?" Iroh asked genially, sipping a piping hot cup of ginseng tea.

* * *

Lila, Sammy and Mia were all getting ready to go visit Zuko's ship, a place Mia wanted to visit more than any other. The girls were dressing in their very best kimonos. Mia was wearing a red kimono with black trim, Sammy was wearing a black kimono with gold dragons on the sleeves, neck and bottom hem while Lila wore a gold kimono with black dragons along the bottom hem and the hems of the sleeves. Zane remained on the bed in his Fire Nation robes, choosing not to go with the girls, and trusting Lila to remain loyal to him.

"Well, ladies. Are we ready to embark on the trip we've dreamt of ever since Avatar aired on TV?" Mia asked. The other two nodded and they set off to meet the prince.


	3. Escape

Ha! Haha! Chapter 3! Three chapters in one day! I AM ON A ROLL, MAN!! I'll try to get chapter four up today, but if not, then it'll be up tomorrow, I promise. Then school, and I'll have to stop for a week (lots of make-up work... missed 3 days of school), then the weekend again! Yay! Read, review, and mostly, enjoy.

Chapter 3: Escape

"Well, that couldn't have been more boring. You'd think that dinner on a Fire Navy ship that belongs to the prince would be more lively." Mia thought aloud.

"Uh, maybe now isn't the best time to say this, but we kinda got a preview of Zuko's social life in the episodes. And anyway, they leave tomorrow. At least we got to meet him." Sammy answered sadly.

They all walked into their rooms to get some well earned rest. Sammy decided she was going to keep a diary of all the exiting things that happened to her. She slunk into the main office, deposited two copper pieces into the cash register and pulled a blank manuscript off the shelf by the door. She grabbed her lucky fluffy purple pen from her shorts pocket, laid down on her bed, and wrote.

_Dear diary,_

_This was kinda last minute, but I have decided to keep a diary of anything and everything interesting that happens to me. Today, uh… the 23 of May, I think, we met prince Zuko. He invited us onto his ship for dinner. He has a magnificent chef. It's not a wonder why he spends so much time on that ship. Pretty much all we did was talk to Iroh, who seemed to enjoy our company. He tried to teach me and Lila how to play Pai Sho, but the sun sank way too early for my liking. Zuko just sat in a corner with his captain planning where to leave for tomorrow. Listening to them talk was horribly boring. At least Iroh was there to keep us entertained. He really is funny. Oh, yeah, Mia and I are competing to see who will catch Zuko's eye first. Although, he's left, so I don't know if that bet will ever finish. Well, goodnight._

_**Sammy Wise**___

* * *

The next morning rose to a foghorn going off at the docks, signaling the Fire Navy ship leaving. Mia and Sammy weren't too happy about that, but they would find a way to live. After all, they prayed that they would get to see the Firebenders again.

* * *

A month had passed since the girls got to meet the prince of the Fire Nation. The four teens were horribly homesick, but Lila and Zane were coping a lot better than Mia or Sammy. It was late morning when a huge, ornate Fire Nation ship pulled into the docks.

"Hey, Lila! Whaddaya make of this?" Sammy yelled from her post behind the register.

"I'd say that's Princess Azula's ship. And if you look closely, you can see those ugly twin old ladies. I'd recognize them anywhere from the second season." Lila answered.

They watched as the princess departed her ship and made her way to their end of the dock. She went into every store but she never came out with anything. Then, she entered Mia and Sammy's store.

"Hello." she said.

"Good morning, your highness." Mia and Sammy said in unison, bowing. _It's best not to blow our cover immediately._ they thought.

"Yes, good morning. Has anyone seen these two around here lately?" she asked as she held out a piece of parchment with Zuko and Iroh's pictures on them.

"Um, no, I'm sorry your highness, those two look familiar, but I've never met them." Mia answered.

"Nor I." Sammy said.

"Interesting, because everyone else I've talked to said that these two were in here last month." The princess said.

"Oh, last month, I'm sorry to say that we were off for a week last month and we never saw them. Though, you might ask our accomplice Lila." Sammy said.

Mia turned back toward the workers' office and yelled, "LILA!!" Lila came rushing.

"What, is it another pirate attack?!" she asked, frantic.

"No, smart one, the princess of the Fire Nation is here asking about someone and since you were working all last month, you might know who she's looking for."

"Oh." Azula raised the parchment and Lila's eyes lit up.

"Hey, I recognize those guys. They were here during the latter part of last month and they picked up a dagger with a hilt shaped like a tiger and dragon with red rubies for eyes. Good customers. They were headed west when they left. I hope that's of some help." Lila answered. _Too bad she'll never be able to read my mind, cause if she did, she'd know they headed east._

"Thank you. That did help. Now, I should be off. Uh, east, that is."

"Huh?" the girls asked in unison.

"Hun, you're a very bad liar."

"I'm not lying."

"Right. I can see it in someone's eyes when they lie. And you, my dear, are lying. And the more you deny, the more tempted I am to burn down this little establishment."

"But I'm not lying," Lila insisted, keeping her cool in much a professional manner.

"Lila, it's best we _don't_ test the princess." Mia urged.

"Mia, you know I'm not lying, I know I'm not lying, Sammy knows I'm not lying. Now we just have to convince Pretty Princess Azula."

"Excuse me, but what did you just call me?"

"You heard me. I, Lila Jo Seals just called you Pretty Princess Azula."

"I hate peasants." Ty Lee mumbled beside her.

"So do I." Azula murmured before she set her fists ablaze with the lightning, or 'blue fire', she was gifted enough to be able to control. She sent a strike of lightning right at Sammy. Zane, who had been watching from the shadows the whole time, lurched out, grabbed Sammy by her knees and threw her into the ground before she was fried to a tender golden brown. Azula then turned on the customers in the shop and set the place ablaze. Calmly, the princess and her friend strutted out of the now blazing weaponry shop.

"Oh, and if you try to interfere with my plans again, I will kill you. So run while you have the chance, or else I'll add you to my list of those I hunt."

"Well, Mitzi won't appreciate it when she comes back and her shop is nothing but a pile of ash." Lila said.

"No, she won't but she'll just get over it! We need to get out!" Zane yelled. All three girls rushed to gather as much merchandise as they could while Zane gathered all their earnings and stuffed it in a bag. The girls piled their arms and aprons full of merchandise that would be useful, for now, they too were on the run.

Charging out of the now billowing shop, the four teens ran to the town stable where their horses were kept, along with most of their valuables. In a matter of minutes, they were tacked up, packed, and ready to run for their lives.

_Two hours later_

"I'm starving." Zane whined.

"You're just like Sokka. Always concerned about your ever-empty stomach." Mia complained.

"Yeah, well, I'm a guy. Can ya blame me?" the three girls nodded in unison.

"Sexist."

"ARE NOT!" the girls shouted. Far off in the distance, Sammy could swear she heard a rustling in the bushes. Seconds later, out shot two jackalopes. Silent as the air itself, Mia and Sammy pulled out two .9 millimeter handguns and shot their lunch.

"Oh, so I'm expected to eat half a rabbit?!" Zane asked, pissed.

"Uh, duh. If three girls can, then so can you."

* * *

Two more weeks had passed, marking the 6th week the girls had been stranded in the Avatar world, and they had only gotten to meet the prince once and the Avatar and his companions never. Their bouts with homesickness had gotten worse, especially for Mia, as she had neither siblings or a boyfriend to keep her company. They were riding through the middle of a rather small desert when they came upon a deserted town in flames. Curious as to what was going on, the teens rode in, wary of the flames licking at the sky.

"What happened here?" Mia asked quietly.

"I don't know, but it looks like the Fire Nation had something to do with it." Lila answered. As she said that, two Fire Nation soldiers came around a corner.

"What are you four doing here?" one asked. Then both soldiers dropped into a fighting stance.

"We were riding by and we saw the flames. I guess curiosity got the better of us." Lila answered coolly.

"I suggest you four leave now," the other soldier said. A scream came from one of the buildings, and flames shot through a window directly above the two soldiers. A fresh pillow of gray smoke puffed, and then dissipated into the much larger billowing cloud above it.

"What did you do here?" Sammy asked menacingly.

"It's none of your business," the first guard sneered.

"Oh, it may not have been, but it is now!" Sammy said, trailing her words into a yell.

She loaded her Weatherby Mark V and shot at a spot directly between the two soldiers' feet. Both men jumped.

"What the hell was that!?" the second soldier shrieked.

Sammy reloaded her Weatherby Mark V, Zane pulled out his Ruger All Weather, Lila pulled out her L.A.R Grizzly, and Mia drug out her M1A rifle.

"Guns," Sammy answered. "With one of these babies, I could have you both dead before your stupid flame reached me. Go ahead, shoot your stupid fire at us." The four locked and loaded their guns and continued to aim at the soldiers, actually aiming to kill them, knowing the evil behind some of the soldiers that served the Fire Nation. Both soldiers, realizing their mistake, turned tail and ran for their rhinos. Once aboard the beasts, they galloped through the town and off into the desert.

"Should we check for survivors?" Mia quietly asked the others.

"No. The fires in some of the buildings are already starting to die down. There wouldn't be any left. Besides, I've seen this before at boot camp. If there's one thing they taught us, it's not to check for survivors if the fires are starting to die down. It would just take more time and energy, and we would be less alert for enemy troops. Let's just move on." Zane answered shamefully.

Evening came, and the teens found refuge at a small hotel in a waterfront town. There, they heard the two soldiers they encountered that afternoon.

"And it was the strangest thing! They pulled out four long, bulky machines and… well, I don't know what they did, but they said that with one of those machines they could kill us before our fire reached them, and they were only twenty yards from us!"

The surrounding soldiers shared whispers of disbelief.

"That can't be!"

"You're lying! Nothing like that exists!"

"How drunk were you two?"

Sammy smiled.

"At least they won't figure out our little secret. Let's just get our rooms and get some sleep. Tomorrow may prove to be more eventful than today." The other three teens agreed, and Zane and Lila headed for their room while Sammy and Mia closed in on theirs.

As Zane reached his side of the single bed in the room, he collapsed onto it, and soon after he was snoring, not a loud snore, but a purr. Lila changed into her pajamas and curled up beside him. She, too, was asleep quickly.

As for Mia and Sammy, things were different in their room. Mia was fussing over a zit that had appeared on her temple, which she could have easily hidden by her sideswept bangs. Sammy was curled up in bed with a candle, her diary, and her lucky fluffy purple pen.

_Dear Diary,_

_Nothing eventful for the past long while. I've only written in this thing twice, and this will mark my third entry. It's been six weeks since we last saw the Prince or his sister, and we have yet to encounter the Avatar and his group. We're staying tonight in a hotel infested with Fire Nation soldiers, so here's to hoping that we don't get caught. We ran into two of them earlier this afternoon and we gave them a right good shock. I shot at them. It was fun, and it helped relieve a bit of the tension I've been feeling lately. Sad thing is, now they're downstairs gossiping about us and our 'unbelievable' weaponry. It was funny listening to some of their comrades. One accused them of being seriously drunk. I laugh. I'm still horribly homesick, though. I miss mom and dad, and every day I think about them. I don't even have pictures of mom and her long cherry red hair up in that bun it's always in. Nor do I have a picture of dad and Grandpa's M14. I miss Munster loads, too. I'm writing by candlelight, and that's starting to die down, so I figure it's time to wrap up this entry. I'll write again as soon as I find some inspiration._

_**Sammy Wise **_

"Whatcha doin?" Mia asked, having finally found the cure to her zit: foundation and a good popping.

"I'm writing in my diary again. This is only entry number three. I'm kinda disappointed, ya know? I was expecting to meet the Avatar or Prince Zuko and live with them, spend our time here in an eventful way, and have to have a new diary every month, but it's been six weeks, and I'm only on page three of my first one."

"Yeah, it's definitely disappointing. If we want to lead an exiting life, maybe we should catch the next boat to the Fire Nation."

Sammy liked what Mia was saying. It also made sense because the battle between the Avatar and Ozai was sure to come soon.

"Hey, I have some blood red nail polish. Why don't we do nails and chat?" Mia piped up, noting the drawl air to her friend. She saw Sammy smile. "Yeah, I knew you couldn't resist red nails!"

Mia pulled out her manicure set, which, surprisingly, she always carried with her. She found perfectly manicured nails and nonexistent cuticles extremely crucial to her life. Sammy just loved to have other people do stuff for her. She was naturally lazy when she got tired, so she didn't mind Mia doing her nails. She especially loved the color of Mia's polish of choice. Blood red was her favorite color, and half her wardrobe had a shade of red on it somewhere. She felt the cool sensation of the cuticle oil on her fingers, and she remembered the first time Mia had introduced her to cuticle oil.

It was the middle of summer, and it was only the four thousandth time Mia and come to spend the night. She had brought her manicure set, and was happily at work doing Lila's nails. Sammy was hanging over her shoulder observing, watching as she worked to take off Lila's French manicure.

When the white tips were off of Lila's nails, she watched Mia apply a tiny dab of a clear, oily liquid to the spot on the top of Lila's right thumbnail just where the nail and the skin met.

"What's that?" Sammy asked.

"Cuticle oil. It loosens the cuticle from the nail and the live skin so that it can be removed easily."

"What is a cuticle, exactly?"

"Your cuticle is the dead skin that accumulates around your nail. It's not that it's so unhealthy that it's gonna kill you, but it looks prettier when it's removed."

Sammy nodded, understanding finally why all the preps at school were always fretting over their cuticles. She found it funny that they were always trying to look pretty, and it was the tougher, more independent and self-reliant girls that got the cute, rugged guys the preps chased.

"All right, Sammy, you're cuticles are gone and your nails are filed to perfection!" Mia said triumphantly, snapping Sammy back to the 'now'.

"Cool, thanks. Hey, could you do some funky black design on top of the red with your nail pens?"

"Yeah, sure! If only I had a picture of the Fire Nation's symbol. That would be the perfect thing to put on top of the red base coat. But first, let's worry about getting that base coat on before getting the covering details." Sammy nodded in agreement and sat quietly while Mia applied the required two coats to each of Sammy's now perfectly manicured fingernails.

"I'm going to go downstairs and see if I can find something with the Fire Nation's symbol drawn on it. I'll be back as soon as possible. Don't mess up that base coat!" Mia said, drawing her Fire Nation robe around her and pulling her slippers on. Sammy nodded compliantly.

"Hey, if those soldiers are still downstairs, then watch it and make sure they don't recognize you," Sammy warned.

"I will. I've got my hair thrown across my face to hide that nasty zit. It was completely out of my face when we met them in that town. Just to be safe, though…" Mia said, pulling the ponytail that held the rest of her hair in a bun out, letting it all fall to hit her shoulders. She pulled it more toward her face, masking her features more than her bangs alone would have.

* * *

Mia returned about twenty minutes later with a small tile in her hand.

"What took so long? I was starting to get worried."

"Sorry. I got into this really interesting conversation with the cashier of this place. She told me that the two soldiers in here earlier have been known to make up crazy stories, and the rest of their regiment has learned well not to listen to them. She told me one of the stories they told last week. It was something about an animal that was part bat and part hippo. Of all the strange things, she said. No one's ever heard of anything like that."

"Well, at least they didn't recognize you and decide to kill you or something."

"Nah, they weren't even down there anymore. I did get a tile from a recent renovation in one of the rooms. They're redoing one of the rooms for the guy commanding the regiment, I forget his rank, but these are going to be used on the floor. Let's get to work!"

Mia sat down across from her friend and set to work with her black nail polish pen and the tile. Another twenty minutes passed before all of Sammy's nails were done. Mia belted out a long yawn.

"Man, what I would kill to know what time it is." Sammy checked her watch, surprised it still worked.

"It's almost one in the morning. We need to get some sleep, but I don't want to have my nails get screwed up."

"Me neither! I worked hard on those little nasties! Painting that symbol was not easy for someone who ain't an artist!" Mia said, aggravated.

"Well, here's one thing we can do. We can play Tens and Twos."

"Nah, that's such a drawl game, and besides, one wrong move with those nails, and my paint job will die a nasty death."

"True. I would say we could play Taboo, but we don't have the cards."

"Hey, why don't we go check on the horses?"

"Nah, too dark. Could trip and fall." Sammy was starting to lose hope. She dearly loved Mia's idea to check on the horses, though. She knew that one warm puff of pepperminty horse breath in her face would cheer her up.

"Yeah, that's true, too. We could sing! That wouldn't put any risk to the paint job!"

Sammy nodded enthusiastically. She watched as Mia ran over to her saddle bags and pulled out her iPod and headphones. She stuck one in her ear and one in Sammy's, preventing any injury to the still-drying paint job on Sammy's nails. She switched to one of her duet songs, Soul Man, by Sam & Dave, a favorite of Sammy's, and a brilliant oldies song to sing to.

Sammy's nails were soon dry, and the two girls turned off the iPod and curled up under the thick wool quilt. They were both asleep moments after their heads touched the pillows.


	4. Gypsies

Hahaha!! CHAPTER FOUR!! Yeah! I've done it! Four chapters in two days! I am so happy with myself! I probably would have more up, but I've been busy shopping, and I've got homework to do, so no updates for... maybe a week?? I've got butt-loads of make-up work from school, so this will probably be my last chapter until next weekend. Enough small talk, I now present: CHAPTER FOUR!!

* * *

Chapter 4: Gypsies

The teens woke the next morning to another drawl, boring day. They headed down to the local diner for breakfast, and were tacked up and gone before the sun escaped the horizon's grasp.

Siku, the woman with whom Mia had spoken the night before, was being inquired that very morning, not long after the group had departed.

"Now, you're sure she had blonde hair with black streaks in it?" one of the soldiers demanded. The woman nodded earnestly, hoping for her feet to touch the earthen floor.

"She was with a boy and two more girls, the girls with striped hair as well. Did you see them leave?" Siku nodded again.

"When did they leave, and what direction did they go in?" a soldier demanded. Siku remained silent, debating as to whether she should betray the woman she spoke with the night before. She had been so kind, and now she was being hunted. What could she have done? Siku wondered. She was shaken abruptly and dropped on her rear on the dirt floor.

"Answer me!"

"Th- They left only a little while ago, just before the sun escaped the horizon. They were headed southwest."

"That will do." And with that, the soldiers departed. Siku feared for the kind strangers. She hoped she hadn't made a mistake in telling the soldiers where the group had gone.

* * *

"We could get this done so much faster if you used the sniper attachment," Zane commented.

"Shut up. The rabbit will be dead when I'm good and ready to shoot it," Sammy retorted. Zane was acting more and more like Sokka every day, what with his hunger pains and ego trips.

BAM!

The gun was fired, sending Sammy backwards only about an inch. Mia ran out to seize their catch. The teens sheared the fur off the jackalope and pierced it with a metal spike. Mia set it beside the previously caught fish above the fire to roast. The scent of cooking meat and fish soon filled the teens' sinuses, easing their tense nerves.

Each sat down with his/her gun and began to clean, waiting for their food to finish its time above the heat.

Mia sat down with her Super Match M1A Rifle and her cleaning tonic and rag. She dipped her rag into the vat of cleaning tonic and began to rub gentle circles onto the gun, making sure to clean the exterior to the point of perfection, as she was so well-known for doing.

Lila sat down next to Zane with her L.A.R. Grizzly, by far her most favorite, and largest, gun. She took out a small rag and began to rub down the dirtier pieces, as well as cleaning out the small, oval divots along the barrel. She was done quickly, having been through the gun-cleaning process so many times with her Grizzly that she could do it blindfolded.

Zane pulled out his Ruger All Weather .44 Magnum Bolt-Action Rifle and went through his paces, smudging the light coating of dust off of the barrel, trigger, and elsewhere the dust had collected.

Sammy, after turning the fish and rabbit, pulled her Weatherby Mark V Ultra Light Weight and continued to clean it. She finished quickly, cleansing every nook and cranny of the light sheen of dust that her gun, and all the others, had collected while at the inn at the last town.

As each finished with their rifles, they moved on to their Wilson Stealth handguns. Each had two of these, totaling eight between the teens, and they were the most recent Christmas gift from Sammy and Lila's parents.

The scent of freshly cooked meat began to fill the small campsite, and as the teens finished with their guns, they placed them back in the saddle bags and returned to the small circle around the campfire.

"Well, it's about time. I am starved," Zane said, grabbing the jackalope and its roasting stick from above the flames.

He pulled four simple metal plates, four forks, and four knives from his own saddle bags and handed them out. The girls each graciously accepted the plates, and as the fish became suitable for consumption, they cut up and divided the fish between the four of them.

As they finished their small meal, they stacked the now soiled plates, forks, and knives for later cleaning. Zane and Lila pulled out the sleeping bags and began to lay them out while Sammy and Mia wandered down to the creek nearby to wash the dishes.

"I wonder if we'll ever get back home," Mia wondered aloud.

"Yeah. I'm really homesick. I miss my parents like absolute mad. And Munster," Sammy commented.

"Yeah, I miss my parents, too. They can be a pain, but I really do miss them. And no matter how much I hated cleaning his cage, I miss my hamster Spunky."

"C'mon, Mia. We'd better get back." The girls gathered the dishes and put them back in Zane's saddle bags. The girls wandered back to the campsite to find Zane and Lila curled up in their sleeping bags, already half asleep.

"Well, they've beat us to the punch again," Sammy whispered. Both girls crawled into their sleeping bags and were asleep in moments.

* * *

The next morning the teens woke to rays of sunlight piercing the canopy of the trees, leaving a streaked appearance to the forest. The fresh scent of morning dew laced the air, along with a light mist of flowers. The horses, tethered to a line not far away, nickered when they noticed Lila stir and get up. She walked over to her saddle bags and pulled out the last of the peppermints that the horses so loved, unwrapped them, and went down the line, feeding each horse a single peppermint.

She paused to listen to them chew, savoring the sound. She pulled the muzzle of her horse up to her lips and kissed the velvet-soft skin. Her horse puffed out a long, warm, peppermint-scented breath of air which Lila delighted in.

"The simple pleasures in life are the best," she said gently, smoothing the hair along her horse's cheek. Far off, she heard birds chirping merrily. She knew they were at home, happy. She wished she could be, too. No matter how much Zane tried, he just couldn't quell the unease rising inside her. She was in a new land, not physically alone, but she felt as if she were the only human left in a world filled with alien creatures.

She heard Sammy tug at her sleeping bag, the universal sign for 'Dang, I'm awake. I want five more minutes!'

She walked over to where her sister slept, or was trying to continue sleeping, and she knelt behind her head. A devious smile stretching across her face, she reached slowly for Sammy's pillow. Getting a good grasp on that which supported Sammy's head, she tugged it out from underneath her sister.

"Ah! What the?! LILA!" Sammy screamed, waking the other two. She scrambled out of her sleeping bag and ran to tackle her sister.

"I'm going to kill you! How dare you wake me up like that! That's just wrong!"

"Hey, you deserved it!"

"What did I do to deserve that kind of punishment?!"

"You exist!" Lila yelled, answering her sister and laughing maniacally. Seeing Sammy speed up, she, too, picked up the pace and made for the trees, breaking the continuous circle around the campfire she and her sister had previously made. All the sudden, as she turned around to check her sister's progress, she ran into something hard. The chest of an armor-clad Fire Nation soldier.

As she hit him, he wrapped his arms around her shoulders, turned her around to face her sister, and lit a small fire on the tip of his forefinger. Sammy slammed to a stop.

"You're going to do as I say, or I'll fry her alive," the solder growled, bringing his lit finger nearer to Lila's face.

"Let me go!" Lila screamed, knowing that, while she may end up burned, at least Zane and Mia might figure out what was going on.

"What do you want with us?" Sammy asked, anger etched across her face.

"I want you four to come with me. I'm taking you captive," he replied.

"You're not taking us anywhere," came Zane's voice, behind the solder. Zane had one of his Wilson Stealth handguns mere millimeters from the man's temple. He cocked the pistol and pressed it flush with the solder's head.

"Let her go," he growled in the man's ear. The soldier let the flame on his finger die and his grip on Lila cease.

Feeling the pressure on her shoulders ebb away, Lila pushed away from the soldier and ran to her sister and best friend. Mia and Sammy grabbed Lila and the girls hugged each other tightly.

"What do you think we should do with this one?" Zane asked. The soldier in front of him was beginning to tremble and sweat.

"I think we should kill him," Mia answered.

"I concur. I like that idea," Sammy replied.

"Me, too," came Lila's response.

Zane shrugged his shoulders. He squeezed the trigger, and the pistol fired. Blood, bone, and brain shot out of the other side of the soldier's head, and he collapsed. A pool of blood began to grow around the man's skull, soaking the leaves, grass, and dirt.

"Let's get going. I don't want to be around when the rest of the soldiers show up," Zane said solemnly. The three girls nodded their agreement.

Back at the camp, the group began packing up. Each took a different chore: Zane began rolling the sleeping bags and tying them up. Lila took to brushing and saddling the horses. Mia grabbed the four canteens and ran to the creek to top them off. Sammy destroyed all remains of the fireplace.

With all the chores done, the group mounted their horses, checked their cinches and tightened them if necessary, nudged their horses into a steady trot, and was gone.

* * *

Noontime came and the dead soldier was finally found. The pool of blood had partially coagulated, but was still mostly liquid. Maggots, flies, and ants had already lay claim to their part of the dead man. Were it not for the man's uniform, he would not have been recognizable.

"This is Narim. He disappeared around daybreak, and he never came back. I heard a strange blasting noise. That must be what killed him. Half his head is gone," the scout spoke solemnly of his former partner.

"Thank you. That will be all." Azula motioned for Mai and Ty Lee to follow her.

"What do you think killed him?" Ty Lee asked in her naturally high-pitched, girly voice.

"I don't know, but whatever it is, they did a very good job of covering their tracks. I can't find a single clue as to who it was. All we have is that old trail to follow." Azula shook her head, clearly disappointed in the lack of evidence she had found.

"I say we follow it. You never know. We might get lucky," Ty lee spoke, obviously being the optimist in that situation.

"Or, Ty Lee, they might be completely gone by now. They've had at least half a day to get away," came Mai's voice, dark and pessimistic as usual.

"No matter. We still follow the trail. Come, let's go," Azula commanded. Mai, Ty Lee, and she mounted their giant lizards and were off in a cloud of dust.

* * *

"Well, there's the next Earth Nation town. Sad thing, though, we don't have any money left from our time working for Mitzi. We've stretched it as far as we could, and now we're completely out," Sammy said as she checked both the horizon and her small, hand-made leather purse.

"Maybe there's someone down there looking for a few good workers to do a day's worth of work. Lord knows I'd be able to do anything they could think of," Zane said hopefully.

"We can check… Hey, what's that?" Lila asked, pointing to a strange cloud of dust down by the dirt road leading into the town.

"That's Azula and her lizards. We'd best not toy with the idea of stopping here. Our horses are warmed up, so we ride like hell to the next town, stop there and look for work, and if we don't find any right away, we ride to the next town, and so on. C'mon, before we waste any more time and risk getting caught," Zane said, edging his horse into a steady canter.

The girls followed behind him, keeping one eye on the infamous dust trail that marked Azula's coming.

_The Next Day_

Dusk came the following day, and the teens had just reached the second town along the coast. Their horses were drenched in a heavy coat of sweat, white, sticky foam gathering on their shoulders and under their saddles. They were breathing heavily, and they were letting their heads droop, obviously quite tired.

Their riders were tired, too, from having to keep up a proper gallop position: hunched over the horse's neck with one's rear end out of the saddle to help the horse extend his/her back while running to maximize the length of the stride.

They walked into town, slowly, only to run into a familiar face. The Avatar was sitting on a rail nearby, clad in Fire Nation attire and with a full head of black hair. Katara, Sokka, and Toph were standing in a circle around him, each clad in their own Fire Nation clothing, and the four were conversing quietly, until—

"I don't care! I'm starved! I am going to go find something to eat…" Sokka yelled, storming away from the group. Katara rolled her eyes and rested her forehead against the palm of her hand.

Sammy jumped at the opportunity to talk to the group. She walked her horse over to the group and gracefully slid off.

"Wow, he sounds like my sister's boyfriend."

"Yeah, he's always hungry. I swear, he must have a hollow leg or something," Katara said genially as the rest of Sammy's group caught up. "So, where are you from?"

"Far away," Lila replied.

"Eh, so are we. My name—"

"Don't bother, we know who you are," Lila said cheerfully, though it still dropped the smiles off the three faces.

"Hey, don't worry," Sammy reassured them. "We're not going to turn you in. We're being chased by Fire Nation royalty ourselves. We know the feeling. Funny thing is, with us, we're being chased by the princess, but the prince and his uncle enjoy our company. We're hoping to come across them again. Safety, you know?"

"Uh, yeah, safety. I don't know why you'd want to hang out with them, though. They're Fire Nation royalty. For all you know, they could be scheming to capture you," Aang said warily.

"Well, that's a chance we're willing to take," Sammy sighed.

Zane spoke up.

"Hey, do you know if anyone here's looking for someone to do some cheap labor for them? We need money badly, and we can do almost anything."

"You might want to go and check out the shipping station. They're always in need of people to haul stuff from Point A to Point B," Toph suggested, pointing to a ramshackle building just down the dock.

"Thanks!" Zane said, nudging his horse into a slow jog and heading down the way.

"I hope he finds some work there," Lila said, worry apparent on her face.

"Alright! I am back and I have food! Who are these people?" Sokka asked, approaching cautiously, one hand on the hilt of his black-blade sword and the other carrying a large pouch bulging with food.

"They're new friends," Katara answered. "They're on the run from Azula, too. Be nice."

Sokka nodded.

"I'm sorry to have to say this, but our horses are horribly tired, and we'd like to get them some food, water, and rest as soon as possible. We'll be at the stables if you want us." And with Sammy's departing words, the trio of girls headed to the stables to cool their horses down.

They reached the stables, and three of the working stablehands came up and offered their services. The girls explained what they wanted done with the horses, from stalls for each to water and food to a good washing, and the stablehands went to work without so much as an improper facial expression.

Zane arrived later with his horse, explaining that he was with the three girls, and another stablehand, one who had worked for the girls, did with Zane's horse what was done with the other three.

The girls had left a message with the stablehands to tell Zane to meet them at the weaponry shop. When Zane received it from the stablehand tending to his horse, he thanked the young boy and headed over.

Throughout the day, the four picked up small, odd jobs around the town that they could do for money. Lila and Mia took to polishing swords for the weaponry shop, Zane hauled cargo for the shipping station, and Sammy took work as a gardener for an elderly couple.

The day passed slowly for the four, but luck soon turned their way. A large Fire Nation ship came into port around mid-afternoon. It was none other than Prince Zuko and Iroh that stepped off the deck.

The Prince and his uncle wandered through the town, stopping at supply shops and stocking up.

During their stay, though, something went horribly wrong. Azula showed up.

"Mai! Search the stores! Ty Lee! The houses! I'll take the docks!" she commanded.

The women split up on their giant lizards. Unbeknownst to the Prince, his uncle, the Gaang, or the four foreign teens, the women on the lizards were closing in quickly on their prey.

Zane was walking down the loading ramp to the Prince's ship, headed for the last box that needed loading when Azula came upon him. She ignored him at first, seeing him as just another Fire Nation peasant laborer, and she went for the dock master first.

Holding up wanted posters of the Avatar, the Prince and his uncle, she railed him for answers. Claiming he knew nothing of the Avatar, he revealed that the Prince's ship was docked down the way. Azula leapt back onto her lizard and scurried down the dock. Zane, now aware of the ruckus, stealthily made his way back to the shipping station to collect his pay, guns loaded and cocked, ready to fire.

Meanwhile, Sammy had only started on the last little corner of the elderly couple's garden when she heard a commotion in the town. Turning, she recognized the giant lizards and the pink outfit of Ty Lee. She dropped her tools and ran inside, hoping not only to save herself and the elderly couple, but also to get her weaponry and pay and leave.

Lila and Mia, on the other hand, had not been so lucky. The first store Mai entered was the weaponry store. Sitting behind the counter tag-team polishing one of the larger blades, the girls shot up out of their seats when Mai entered.

"Tell me, has anyone seen a young boy traveling with a young blind girl about the same age, a teenage girl with long, brown hair, and a boy with a wolf tail?!" she demanded. The customers in the shop all shook their heads, telling her they had not seen anything. She then looked to the girls behind the counter.

"You! You're the ones with the strange weaponry!"

Mai shot daggers at the girls, but they ducked behind the counter and out the back, failing in collecting their full day's pay. They had left their rifles behind the store, and as they ran out the back, the girls grabbed their weaponry and fled to the stables.

Mai made for them, but they were gone by the time she made it out the back door.

At the stables, the three girls met up again, but noticed that Zane was not with them. Lila grabbed Zane's and her horse and began throwing tack and supplies onto them. Sammy and Mia did the same, and soon the four horses were tacked up and ready to go, having had almost a full day to rest and recover.

Searching the docks, Sammy spotted Zane. He was cornered by Azula and Ty Lee. Sammy lurched onto her horse and spurred it into a gallop. Wrapping the reins around the saddle horn, she loaded and cocked her Weatherby Mark V and took aim.

She shot at the tail of one of the lizards, hitting her target dead on in a ride-by. Queuing her horse with a shift of her leg, she turned her horse a full 180 degrees and made for the other lizard while watching the first flee uncontrollably.

She locked and loaded her gun again, taking aim this time at the left foreleg of the remaining lizard. She shot, and her gun held true, shattering the knee of Azula's lizard. The lizard limped away as fast as he could on three usable legs, leaving Azula to lurch off and begin to fight from the ground.

Noticing the commotion, Mai ran to assist Ty Lee with her uncontrolled lizard while Azula was left to the two teens at the docks.

Prince Zuko and Iroh were standing not too far away, watching the whole scene unfold.

Azula took aim with a large, long chain of fire. Sammy leapt off her horse, heading it up the loading ramp and up to Zane. The fire chain hit between Sammy and her horse, scorching the air and dirt left behind.

Noticing the scheme her friends were uncoiling behind Azula, Sammy just stayed where she was, crouched near the ground, all eyes on her enemy.

Azula aimed for another attack, but never followed through. Mia came up behind her on her horse and rammed the butt of her rifle hard into the back of Azula's head, knocking her out cold.

Zane grabbed Sammy's horse and made his way down the loading ramp to meet the others and get his horse.

"Are you three okay?" he asked upon arrival.

The three girls nodded, Sammy out of breath and panting slightly. Iroh walked up to the group and wormed his way in.

"You four worked like a well-oiled machine. That was quite worth watching."

"Thank you," Sammy and Mia said in unison.

"Sir, I wonder if you might do us a favor." Lila asked.

"What might that be?"

"We need a place to hide. We can't seem to get away from those women. They've caught up to us time and time again, almost every town we've stopped at. We'll work for you if you'll just hide us and our horses."

"Well, that is not purely my decision. Zuko!" Iroh yelled, beckoning his nephew over. "Would you be interested in helping these fine young fighters hide from your sister?"

"I'm not sure that would be a good idea, Uncle."

"Oh? Why not?"

"If they're being chased, then they could inadvertently lead Azula right to us. That, and what exactly can they do, besides fight without bending?"

"I'll tell you what we can do," came Mia's response. "We can shoot farther than your silly little YuuYan archers could ever dream of with these," she said, raising her rifle from its saddle pouch, "and we can fight like hell, even though we can't bend. We're tough, independent workers, we're resilient, and we're well worth our troubles.

"Zane, here, can lift almost 300 pounds worth of gear, as well as track, hunt, and apply proper tactical skills in the battlefields. Sammy, the one you saw launch herself off her horse, is a highly talented marksman, as well as good at gymnastics, swordsmanship, and archery. Lila, here, is talented at marksmanship, gymnastics, archery, and swordsmanship, as well, as she and Sammy are sisters.

"I myself am a skilled tracker, I can hunt better than any of these three, I can survive in the wild with nothing but my wits, and I have had experience crafting items from melted metal. I've molded swords, daggers, throwing stars, arrowheads, anything you can think of that can be made into a weapon. So tell me, Prince, what do you think? Are we worth your time?"

* * *

Two weeks had passed, marking the second month the four teens had been in the Avatar realm. Sammy was lying in bed in one of the rooms aboard Zuko's ship. She had an oil lamp, her manuscript-journal, and her lucky fluffy purple pen.

_Dear Diary,_

_I've done it. I've made it on Zuko's ship. We've been here two weeks, and mostly we've been taking Pai Sho and tactics lessons from Iroh. I'm not complaining, myself, because now I'm not stuck in a saddle the whole day. Zuko is much more secluded than I remember him being. That, and I think I missed the episode where he got a new ship and freed his uncle. Or, that episode has officially happened, and I lived through it. I honestly don't know, though. Iroh has been a true blessing. He's the uncle I never had. I feel as though I can ask him anything._

_Lila has been spending a lot of time with Zane. I swear, I think she's pregnant. I shouldn't be cruel to my sister, but she and Zane have been together for almost two and a half years. I'm shocked she's not pregnant now that we've left home. 'Course, maybe she's playing it safe, hoping that we'll get back to our own dimension soon. That, or she's already preggers but just isn't showing yet. If that's the case, though, where's the morning sickness?! Huh?! I was looking forward to laughing at her all through the first few months of her pregnancy. Knowing her hormones, I'd be running like hell as soon as she could stand. She blows so much stuff WAY out of proportion when she's hormonal. Ah, well, that's Lila for ya._

_Gush time!! Zuko is HOTT!! OMG! I walked out this morning to him training shirtless with a couple other soldiers. His pecks are gorgeous, and his abs look just rock-hard and sexy. I'm going to try and corner him, soon, and talk to him one on one. Maybe I'll be able to see what's going on. Normally, were I watching this from home through an HDTV screen, I'd have total access to his life, but now that it's been two months since my last exposure to a TV and one month since I last saw him, I've got to find out!! NOW!! Some might call me mad. I would concur. That's where I shall end. Iroh just called for dinner. I smell grilled sea bass. YUM!!_

_**Sammy Wise**__** -**_

I had planned a slightly larger part for the Gaang, but I just couldn't figure out how to put it in with the rest of the story. Apologies. This chapter was sorta rushed, and yet it took up a good 10 pages in Word '03. The longest yet. Go figure. Anyway, if any of you are curious, I have pictures of the guns I mention in this story on my homepage. You'll have to scroll down to somewhere around the middle to find them. They all open in a new window, so if you have pop-up blocker, disable it. Also, if there's any of you out there who know guns, I just want to warn you of one thing: I picked the guns based on what I could understand of the text, what I learned while watching the Tremors movies, and which looked most fitting for the character(s). If you have anything to critique me on based upon my gun choices, then please, critque away! Just don't flame. I will hate you, I will post an anti-flame post at the top of my profile, I will tell all my buddies, and I will post an anti-flamers forum. Just warning you!

rt

* * *


	5. The Hunt

**A/N:** I am so sorry this took me so dang long. I decided yesterday that I wanted to update this story, so I worked on it a lot yesterday and some today. I hope you all like it! Please read and review!!

* * *

Chapter 5: The Hunt

As Sammy headed down for dinner, which she had correctly guessed as grilled sea bass, she began to plot ways to corner the elusive species that was Prince Zuko. After two weeks aboard his ship, she was accustomed to his strange daily rituals. He trained after dinner, when the day was coolest, and showered afterward.

Stepping down the cold metal stairs, Sammy bumped into Zane coming from his room.

"Hey, psycho," Zane said, toying with his girlfriend's sister.

"Hey! I'm not… okay, yes, I am psycho. But just think, your girlfriend is related to me, which means that she and I are a lot alike, so she's psycho too!"

"Did I ever say I didn't like psycho people?"

"Well… no."

"Good, then quit being so defensive. C'mon, let's head down for dinner. Lila's still in her room doing God knows what."

Sammy decided to ask her burning question.

"Is my sister pregnant with your child?" She watched earnestly as Zane's face paled.

"What?! Whoa! God, no! She and I haven't even had sex yet! What, no, where did that come from?"

"Just curious. You two have been spending a lot of time together, and I know for a hard, cold fact that my sister wants kids. Two boys, to be exact."

"Look, I love your sister, but she and I have not gone that far yet. Dang, girl, you are nosy!"

"Aww, thank you! I am, aren't I?" Sammy smiled as Zane grimaced.

"Oh shut up." Zane threw his arm around Sammy's shoulders, Sammy stuffed her hands into the pockets of her sweater, and the two walked down to dinner.

* * *

The two walked into the 'dining room' of the ship to a table filled with grilled sea bass, steamed vegetables, chilled fruits of all sorts, and two large bottles of wine. Zane took a seat across the table from Iroh, Mia to his right and room for Lila to his left. Sammy sat to Mia's right, next to Iroh and across from the elusive Prince Zuko's seat.

Zuko walked in moments later and sat down. A bone-chilling silence filled the room. Iroh chose to shatter it.

"So where is Miss Lila?" he asked generally. Zane answered.

"I don't know. When I left her, she was sitting on her bed in her room. She said she would be down for dinner."

At that, Lila came staggering in.

"Man, now I remember why I hate being on ships." Lila's complexion looked pale and cold. She sat down next to Zane and rested her head on his shoulder.

"What's wrong, baby?" he asked, wrapping his arm around her shoulders.

She managed one word.

"Seasick."

All the sudden, her shoulders jolted backwards sharply. She shot her hand to her mouth and ran to the deck, Zane on her heels. She came to a screeching halt when her stomach rammed into the railing of the ship and she vomited. Zane came to a more graceful halt behind her. He ran his thumbs behind her ears, gathering her long hair out of her face. Lila clutched her stomach and vomited again, resting her head on the ship's railing.

Zane moved her hair to one hand, wrapped his other around her stomach gently, and left a sweet, short kiss on her cheekbone.

"Why didn't you tell me you got seasick?" he asked, his voice a gentle whisper.

"It— it doesn't usually happen. I just get sick if the boat, ship, ugh, whatever gets thrown around."

"So the storm this morning caused your seasickness?" he asked, moving his free hand to stroke her cheek gently. He looked to the darkened horizon behind them.

Lila nodded in answer, and then she clutched her stomach, leaned over the railing, and vomited again.

Zane now hated storms; he hated them so very much for what they did to his girl.

"Oh, baby, I wish I could do something to help you."

"Do you have any Kimmearol?" she asked, wiping the small trickle of vomit from her chin with her kimono sleeve.

"Um, no. What is Kimmearol?"

"Kimmearol are the pills that I take for my seasickness. I didn't find any in my stuff; that's what I was doing in my room, searching for my meds."

"I'm sorry, babe, I don't have any either." Zane curled his arm back around her middle and kissed her cheek again. He rested his cheek flush with hers, and she rested the side of her forehead against her arm. With Zane holding her up, Lila fell asleep in his arms.

* * *

"How do you think Lila is?" Mia asked.

"I'm not sure, but I'll bet a million that she's happier with Zane by her side," Sammy replied.

Both girls looked up to see Zane carrying a pale, sleeping Lila in his arms.

"I'm sorry guys, but I don't think I can dine with you tonight. Lila's sick as a dog and I don't want to leave her. Sammy, if you wouldn't mind, could you bring me something to eat?"

Sammy nodded.

"She was looking for her Kimmearol, wasn't she?" Zane nodded solemnly. "No luck?" This time, he shook his head. "I'll bring you something to eat a little later, and I'll bring you a bowl and rag for her." Zane nodded and left, his sweetheart in his arms.

Iroh chose to speak.

"What's Kimmearol?"

"Kimmearol is the special medicine that my sister takes to ebb away her seasickness. We don't have any left, and we have no clue what the ingredients are so we can't recreate it ourselves."

* * *

A soft knock sounded at the open metal door. Zane looked up and Zuko, not Sammy, as expected, walked in with a tray of food, a rag, and a bowl of water with steam rising in soft clouds.

He walked up to Zane and set the tray down on the bedside table. He flicked a finger and lit the candle that stood there.

"You really love her, don't you?" Zuko asked as he sat at the foot of Lila's large bed. Zane took a moment before answering to dip the rag into the bowl of water, ring it out, fold it up, and set it gently on Lila's forehead. He pulled his chair up next to the bed, rested on his elbows, and picked her soft hand up in his.

He looked over at Zuko.

"I would die for her," he whispered. He returned his gaze to Lila's pale cheek as he stroked the back of her hand softly, gently.

"Would you mind if we talked, man to man?" Zuko asked. Shocked by his question, knowing that this was not the Zuko he was used to seeing on TV, knowing something had changed, he shook his head.

Zuko stood up and walked to the large iron door. He slid it closed with barely a squeak.

Zuko kicked off his boots and sat down at the bottom of Lila's bed.

"How did you know she was the one?" he asked, his voice a whisper. Zane looked up at Zuko, wondering if the ruthless, cunning, kick-your-ass prince was really asking him about love. He pulled Lila's clammy hand up to his lips and kissed it softly.

"One day, going down the hallway at school, I looked at her and my heart just felt like… well, it's hard to explain. I just felt like I was walking on a cloud. And when she walked up to me, smiling the whole way, and hugged me, I just… knew.

"She's always been my princess, the most beautiful girl alive, the only one I'll ever love. She and I have been together for a good two or more years. Believe me, I've had plenty of temptation. So many beautiful girls wandered the halls at our school, so many of them would've given their left leg to date me. I never noticed a single one of them.

"Once I realized that, no matter what she looked like, no girl could draw me away from Lila, I knew she was the one. You could say that I'm addicted to my girl."

Silence filled the room. Zuko began dry-washing his hands and Zane continued to stroke the back of Lila's hand.

"I envy you," Zuko muttered.

"Pardon?" Zane asked, a puzzled look on his face.

"You have two perfect best friends and a beautiful girl, you're much more attractive than I am, and women don't run away from you when they lay eyes on you. Your girl is the personification of independence, strength, and beauty. She's got everything a man could ever want, and you've absolutely won her heart. I've seen the way she looks at you."

"So, let me get this straight, you envy me because I have a wonderful girl, two great best friends, and a great physique?" Zuko nodded. "That makes no sense at all."

"You know what you want, and you already have some of it. I don't even know what I think I want. I think I want to go back to the Palace with my father, I think I want to be king of the Fire Nation when my father passes away, and I think I want to marry my girlfriend, Mai. But I'm not sure. I spent some time at the Palace with my father and my crazy sister. My uncle was in a cell below the Palace. I went down and talked to him as often as I could. Nothing felt right.

"My uncle stopped responding to what I would say. My sister got even more confusing than she's ever been. Mai hasn't changed at all from the way I remembered her. And, most difficult for me to understand, my father welcomed me back as though I had been out on a hunting party for a week, not banished for three years. I realized in that time that I was happier on a ship with my uncle and my crew.

"You see, my sister lied to my father. She told him that I had killed the Avatar when, in reality, she was the one that had almost killed him. He escaped and his friends saved him. My sister somehow knew that he had survived. She's been plotting against me my whole life. I walked up to my father one day and I told him that Azula had lied. I told him that I wasn't the one that killed the Avatar, and I told him that, somehow, the Avatar is still alive."

Zane nodded, listening in and paying attention to what he had so obviously missed in the time he had not been exposed to a TV. He was still stroking Lila's hand.

"My sister managed to convince my father that I had gone delusional. I don't know what she said to him, but he was utterly convinced that it was my fault that the Avatar had gotten away. So he challenged me to a two-on-two Agni Kai. He and Azula against Uncle and me. We won. I nearly killed Azula, and my uncle had my father at his mercy. I thought I had knocked my sister out cold, so I walked over to my father and Uncle. I told my father that I was sick of being looked upon as a monster, and I hated the brand that he gave me. I told him that it would only be right if he suffered the way I had.

"I burned the area over his left eye. He now looks like me, but aged. As it turned out, he and Azula were okay, and now Azula is hunting me. My girlfriend is hunting me with my sister."

"Wait, you're dating Mai? That girl is psychotic!" Zane exclaimed.

"Yeah, she's also a pessimist with a bad attitude and good aim. For the longest time I thought I loved her, but now that I've left the palace and now that she's hunting me, I know I don't. What would you do if you were in my shoes?"

Zane was unsure what to do. Was this really the prince he knew so well? Or, at least, thought he knew so well? What had happened to his rogue-ish attitude? His ignorance? His cruelty? Could this 'new prince' really be for real, or was he getting played by a con artist? He decided to answer.

"Well first off, I don't think I would've chosen a pessimistic girl. But that's just me. Were I in your shoes right now, I think I'd have to try looking for another girl. Find one that dwarfed this Mai chick. After that, I would go and help the Avatar. I don't think he has a teacher to teach him fire bending. Go and teach the Avatar fire bending. You won't redeem yourself in your father's eyes, but your father is an ass, and I wouldn't be particularly worried about winning him over."

"Where am I going to find a girl like that?" Zuko asked, staring at his hands, dry-washing them.

"I can't answer that for you. You never know, she might be closer than you think." He was thinking of Samantha.

* * *

Zuko walked out onto the deck of his ship, expecting his uncle to be there to teach him a new move, but instead he found Sammy standing on the ship's railing facing out to the sea. He stood in the doorway for a moment, watching.

All the sudden, Sammy tucked her knees to her chest and jumped backward. In a series of back flips, back tucks and round-off back hand springs, she made her way across the deck of the ship, landing on the other side of the ship, precariously balanced on the railing, facing out to sea again. She jumped up and did a back flip in the air, landing in her right splits. Her hands were out to her sides like a plane's wings, never once faltering.

Zuko was only slightly impressed.

"That was a nice landing," he said, walking up to her.

"Thanks," she said, not bothering to look at him.

"Your flips were somewhat—"

"Simple?" she finished for him.

"Well, yeah."

"I find it best to start off with something simple and work my way up to the more difficult flips after I'm warmed up."

"Smart choice."

Sammy pushed herself up off the ground, only to do a handstand with her legs still in her right splits. She rocked back onto her right leg and stood up, facing the prince. In the sunset, he looked both dangerous and attractive.

"My uncle's not out here; would you mind practicing with me?" he asked, his blushing cheeks unnoticeable in the waning light of the sunset. Sammy smiled.

_Haha bitches! Yeah!_ she thought to herself. "I'd love to," she answered.

For a good hour or more, the two tumbled, flipped, and twisted around the deck, practicing fighting and gymnastics maneuvers until the sun had long disappeared beneath the horizon. Iroh wandered out onto the deck to find the two teens sweat-covered and practicing.

"You two have done nicely. Miss Samantha, your form is quite good. I'm afraid I have to ask the two of you to go to bed. It's late and we are going to dock tomorrow to get supplies."

The two teenagers bowed to one another and Sammy turned for the hallway. As she passed Iroh, she nodded and smiled, but continued on her way. As Zuko made to pass his uncle, Iroh set his arm out to block Zuko's path.

"Yes, Uncle?"

"It's good for you to practice with others your own age. Were she a bender, she would be a very formidable opponent."

"Yes, Uncle."

Zuko left his uncle and made his way to his room. He showered quickly, and he was soon in bed and asleep.

Meanwhile, Sammy, having already showered, was up gossiping with Mia.

"So your plan worked so far?" Mia asked.

"Yep. I was just nonchalantly up practicing my gymnastics when Zuko came out to practice, and his uncle was oh so conveniently not out there, so Zuko and I were alone. Yeah."

Mia leaned forward and hugged her best friend.

"Hey, congrats! Now that you've gotten this little fishie's attention, you need to snag him. How do you plan to do that?"

"I haven't gotten that far yet." The girls broke the hug and the smile that previously adorned Sammy's face had disappeared.

"I know! I have the perfect thing for you to wear tomorrow!" Mia nearly screamed as she leapt off the bed. She ran to her dresser and began throwing clothes out onto the floor, searching for something. She popped back up with a pair of harem-style pants and a barely-there tube top, both in a deep maroon with black edging. She ran to her closet and began throwing shoes out of the way until she found a pair of moccasin-style ballet flats with a curled-up toe to match the outfit.

She reeled around and ran back to her dresser. She pulled her necklace case open and, much the opposite of her previous searching attempts, carefully searched for jewelry to match. She came up with a necklace made of maroon wooden beads, a bracelet in the exact same style, and a pair of wooden bangle earrings, also maroon.

"Here," she said, "wear this." She laid out the pants and shirt on the bed, set the shoes across one pant leg, and laid the jewelry on the top.

"That looks brilliant! Where did you get that?"

"Bought it. Never told anyone." Sammy grabbed the jewelry and shoes as Mia picked up the pants and top. Both girls walked back to Sammy's room and placed the outfit on Sammy's dresser.

"Now you had better work this thing until it can't be worked any more. I'm trusting you with this." Mia said, mocking Sammy's usual warning tone.

"I plan to work this until it can't be worked any more, and then working it more." The girls smiled to one another before Mia left for her own room, closing Sammy's door, and Sammy curled up under the covers on her bed and fell asleep.

* * *

Back in Lila's room, Zane had fallen asleep, his head resting on his arms, his hands still clutching Lila's pale, chilled palm.

Iroh walked by on his way to his own room. He paused and glanced in at the sleeping couple. Lila was pale, but asleep, under her maroon covers, and Zane, still in his chair, was beside her.

Sunset was coming around and Zane woke up, still sitting in the chair beside Lila's bed. She was still asleep with the cloth on her forehead. Zane reached forward and took the rag. He set the palm of his hand against her forehead and felt for her temperature. She was still a little warm, but she was better than she was the day before.

He pushed away from the chair and sat beside her. Leaning forward, he set his forearms on both sides of her shoulders and laid his cheek against hers.

"I love you baby," he whispered. He kissed her temple. He pulled away and sat back down on his chair. Leaning again on his forearms, he began stroking her wrist with one hand as he ran the tips of his other hand's fingers through her hair.

Deciding to get her more heated water, he let her go, picked up the tray and headed for the kitchen, leaving her to sleep.

Lila stirred. Her hand, the one Zane had previously been holding, twitched. Her eyes shot open, and she sat up quickly. She looked around, frantic. How did I get in here? she asked herself. She remembered getting sick to her stomach the night before, and she remembered Zane being there with her, as she could always count on him to be.

The door creaked open. Lila scurried to the wall that her bed backed up to. When Zane turned the corner, she breathed a sigh of relief.

"Hey, babe! You're awake!" he said happily. He set the bowl of now hot water and the rag down on the bedside table and sat down on her bed.

"Man, for a minute there, I woke up and I had no fucking clue where I was. Scared me to death."

Zane crawled up beside her and took her in his arms. She wrapped her arms around the base of his ribcage as he set to fingering through her long tresses.

"We're here on Zuko's ship, in your room. I only left to get some more warm water for you."

Lila craned her neck up and pecked Zane on the cheek. She then set her own cheek against his shoulder, her nose above the dip along his collarbone.

"I love you, Zane," she said.

"I love you, too."

He laid her back down on her bed as he pulled the covers up. He curled up beside her with his arms around her, and the two fell asleep peacefully.

Quick Author's Note: I made up the medicine Kimmearol. I liked the way it sounded and I wanted to use it. Again, I DO NOT OWN AVATAR. Please read & review because you love me!


End file.
